To recognize the tragedy of 9-11, that class act, Mr. Family Values himself, Newt Gingrich, plans to show a film entitled America at Risk: The War With No Name.
The trailer:
It appears that this endeavor is really a war on President Obama. From Newt’s website:
Together with Dave Bossie, Kevin Knoblock and the team at Citizens United, we made this movie because we believe America IS at risk. We believe the dangers facing our country ARE real and growing.
In fact, we believe that if our enemies acquire nuclear, chemical or biological weapons from Iran or North Korea, they will attempt to kill millions of Americans and destroy entire cities.
Our movie, America at Risk, is designed to inform the American people about the real dangers we face and to begin to outline a strategy for victory.
Today, Washington refuses to tell the truth about the war we are fighting. According to experts, we are at war with Radical Islamists — and it is a war we are losing.
The Global War on Terror has been renamed the “Overseas Contingency Operation” by the Obama Administration. They have removed ‘Islamic extremism’ and ‘jihad’ from national security strategy documents. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has suggested we replace the word “terrorism” with “man-caused disasters.”
But how do we win a war with an enemy the Obama Administration refuses to identify and doesn’t even understand?
What a shame that this man takes a day that should be marked with solemn reverence to reignite fear and to play the politician, under the guise of what’s best for us. Playing on Americans’ fears on this day is just low, even from a man who tells a woman he is divorcing her while she is in the hospital.
Other politicians have self serving events planned also. From thinkprogress.org:
–But in addition to using September 11th as a launching pad to score political points, the right is now using the day to rake in cash. A sampling of the 9/11 profiteers:
This weekend, Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck are hosting a rally in Anchorage, Alaska to mark the anniversary of the September 11th attacks. Ticket prices range from $73.75 per person (including taxes and fees) to a high of $225. As the Hill newspaper reports, “there was no indication as to whom or what the proceeds will go.”
– Disgraced lobbyist Ralph Reed is using his consulting firm Century Strategies to host a “Faith and Freedom Conference and Strategy Briefing” with an assortment of conservatives, including Brent Bozell, Tony Perkins, Rich Lowry, Tucker Carlson, Grover Norquist, Gov. Bob McDonnell (R-VA), Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (R-GA), Erick Erickson, and others. The event is on September 10th-11th, and costs $95 for early registration.
Newt comes from the group of people who just has to have someone to hate, an enemy. When the Berlin Wall came down, many of us wondered who the new enemy would be.
Newt needs to wait at least a day to start the fear-mongering. If the area where the twin towers used to stand is Physical Ground Zero, then 9-11 is also Time Ground Zero and we must honor it as such. That should be the day that we are all United Americans.
“Newt comes from the group of people who just have to have someone to hate, an enemy.”
Moon, are you saying then that the Islamic jihadists trying to attack America and kill her citizens are not an “enemy” — that to recognize that we are under threat and say so is only “fear-mongering”?
Of course not.
Do you think that 9-11 is the day to do the fear monger thing? I don’t. I think it should be a solemn day that honors those who died or were maimed. It might also be a good time to reflect on those who have been killed or maimed avenging 9-11. It isn’t the time to be politicking.
He is fear mongering rather than working with the current administration to help stave off dangers from jihadists. I saw no solutions …just fear mongering. Making people afraid solves nothing.
I really don’t see how you can honor the memory of those who died on 9/11 or the memories of those who died on the battlefield without addressing how and at whose hand they died. I don’t think that is fear-mongering anymore that saying “Never Again” to neo-Nazis when remembering the victims of the Holocaust. It is a statement of continuing fact. This “war” is not over — not by a long shot. But, having suffered through some God awful Memorial Days in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, I will hand you the bit about “politicking.” Makes me uncomfortable also. It could have waited.
Perhaps we can achieve a different kind of “remembrance” at some point in the future when the immediate crisis is past. We do that now with regard to those on both sides who fought and died in the Civil War, but that attitude did not blossom overnight. We spent many years punishing the South after the more temperate and more forgiving hand of Abe Lincoln left the scene.
During your excellent Memorial Day threads, I made mention of an uncle of Mrs. W who died in France while trying to rescue a wounded comrade on the battlefield. For that he was awarded posthumously the Cross of Valor, the award next below the Medal of Honor. On the 50th anniversary of the end of WWII, a local newspaper interviewed that man’s surviving sisters about their brother’s sacrifice. From their responses, it was like the death had happened only a short time before. As one of the sisters said after reflecting on how her brother had been in the process of trying to save a wounded man: “Those damned Nazis just cut our brother down without mercy!!” Wounds sometimes take a long time to heal.
The people mentioned are charging money for admission for starters. Secondly. we have been at war for almost 9 years. It isn’t like we have been ignoring our surroundings. Thirdly, we just brought combat troops home from Iraq. Fourthly, Newt, (and I don’t know about the others) is taking political swipes at the president of the United States. That is opportunism. Saying we are losing a war with radical Islam? Not sure that is appropriate to say we are losing anything.
I don’t think that 9-11 should be used as a political rally, regardless of who is doing it. Wounds do take a long time to heal, if they ever heal. Even more reason not to turn a solemn occassion in to something political. Newt has never been known for good taste. I thought for a long time he had improved. I sadly report I was wrong. He must smell the presidency looming on the horizon.
My mother always told me that Virginia paid war reparations until well into the late 1920’s. I have never seen any proof of Virginia having to pay but I also don’t know how to research something like that. Those wounds may very well never be over. I am the 5th generation away from that war in my family. My great great grandfather and his brothers were confederate soldiers. Probably the real fire on the subject extinguished with the death of the 4th generation. But the ashes still smolder in the 5th generation. Time will tell.
To USE 9-11 as a fundraiser for political gain is offensive. The events of the Holocaust, to my knowledge, have NEVER been used to raise money for any specific political party. I am a donor to the Holocaust Museum and NEVER have I EVER seen money raised used for political gain. Newt et al should be embarrassed by their opportunisitic behavior.
The events surrounding the Mosque in NY, for me, demonstrate that the religion of Islam has been morphed with extremism and terrorism. Creating a narrative that ISOLATES the extremists is simply the SMART strategy to take as opposed to lumping everyone in the same boat, which, by the way, only alienates MORE muslims who are NOT extremist.
The war now has no name. Obama refuses to name the enemy. Bush was heading that way. Islam is NOT a religion of peace. Our troops are being killed in Iraq yet they are called non-combat troops. PC Bulls##t. Obama refused to name Hassan Nidal as an enemy combatant, refused to mention his motivation, and has not charged him with treason. Terrorist acts are now man-caused disasters, or some such pablum. His speeches about the war never contain any words concerning victory. He has preemptively surrendered in Afghanistan by naming a withdrawal date.
The religion of Islam has not morphed. Rauf now states that if the mosque in NYC is NOT built, Muslims will attack. Islam is inherently violent.
From: the Ayatollah Khomeini
“Those who know nothing of Islam pretend that Islam counsels against war. Those [who say this] are witless. Islam says: Kill all the unbelievers just as they would kill you all! Does this mean that Muslims should sit back until they are devoured by [the unbelievers]? Islam says: Kill them, put them to the sword and scatter [their armies]…. Islam says: Whatever good there is exists thanks to the sword and in the shadow of the sword! People cannot be made obedient except with the sword! The sword is the key to Paradise, which can be opened only for the Holy Warriors! There are hundreds of other [Qur’anic] psalms and Hadiths [sayings of the Prophet] urging Muslims to value war and to fight. Does all this mean that Islam is a religion that prevents men from waging war? I spit upon those foolish souls who make such a claim.”
Now, isolating the more violent members is very smart. How do we do that within America? How do we do that within an ultrafundamentalist area like Afghanistan? The Afghanis that do support us will not get involved because we are leaving. Where Muslim and non-Muslim,(or Sunni/Shia) countries meet, there is a violent border. Phillipines, Balkans, Thailand, Iran/Iraq, Pakistan, India, Ceylon, Afghanistan, Chechnya.
Our enemy may not be Islam but all of our enemies are Islamic. Their religion is their motivation. We ARE in a religious war and our government and parts of our population refuse to believe that. When members of a religion has violence as their DEFAULT reaction to ANY perceived offense, they are not civilized and should not be members of society.
Silly me, I forgot Israel and, well, everybody Muslim…..
The Ayatollah Khomeini HAS to be dead by now.
I believe plenty of Muslims are peaceful. I also believe plenty aren’t.
We can’t declare war on all Muslims. There are a billion of them. Plus it is impossible and foolhearty.
Millions of Muslims ARE peaceful. But that does not abrogate our responsibility to correctly identity our enemy and their motivation. Khomeini is still considered a major authority on Islamic doctrine.
However, those millions still have not denounced or rejected the violent members of Islam. If they did, they would be considered apostates. The tenets of Islam include instructions on the proper use of deceit, violence, and subterfuge against unbelievers. I believe that the majority of Muslims do not want war with the west. However, their silence means that the warmongers in their culture are in charge.
Any criticism of Islam is met with threats or acts of violence. In their eyes, there is no valid criticism. They cannot conceive of the irony of rioting with signs stating “Death to critics of Islam” because the west has said that Islam is a violent religion.
We may not feasibly declare war on all Muslims, but that does not prevent treating any Muslim that advocates violence as an outcast. If an immigrant, deport them. If a country advocates violence, shun them. If its a citizen of the US, treat them accordingly as any that promotes violence. There are laws against that. We need to stop treating them with PC kid gloves and giving into there demands that we change because something offends them. Do we change anything to not offend Christians, Jews, Hindus? Are the Amish or Hassidic any less conservative? The difference is that they don’t demand that a culture or region accommodate them. They adapt. Whole regions of Europe are slowly becoming dhimmified. Women in parts of Norway and Sweden cannot go about in short skirts or blouses without being in danger of rape. Said rapists have declared that women not properly covered are asking for it. Courts in those areas have punished them, but, published that women should dress “modestly” to prevent those attacks.
Mark Steyn says it well. General Napier’s quote is appropos.
At some point we have to face down a culture in which not only the mob in the street but the highest judges and academics talk like crazies. Abdul Rahman embodies the question at the heart of this struggle: If Islam is a religion one can only convert to, not from, then in the long run it is a threat to every free person on the planet.
In a more culturally confident age, the British in India were faced with the practice of “suttee” – the tradition of burning widows on the funeral pyres of their husbands. Gen. Sir Charles Napier was impeccably multicultural:
“You say that it is your custom to burn widows. Very well. We also have a custom: When men burn a woman alive, we tie a rope around their necks, and we hang them. Build your funeral pyre; beside it, my carpenters will build a gallows. You may follow your custom. And then we will follow ours.”
So, we must face down the “customs” of Islam that do not accommodate the free traditions of the West. We ARE in a war with Islam for the hearts and minds of the world. We must trumpet the superiority of our way of life. We must confidently denounce the barbarity of some Muslim practices. We must understand that many Muslim organizations, though peaceful, are supporters of Islamic jihad and the advancement of Sharia throughout the world. And that includes the imam of the “9/11 Victory Mosque.” We must demand and end to fatwas demanding the death of converts or honor killings, or,…well, the list is long.
At its basic nature and tenets, Islam is not compatible with western ideals. So either it must change or we must change. Which would you prefer?
Plenty of literature by muslims AGAINST extremism.
Here is fabulous interview with Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf regarding Islam http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Islam/2005/02/Islam-And-America-Three-Years-After-911.aspx?p=3
http://www.islamfortoday.com/index.html
http://www.muhajabah.com/otherscondemn.php
http://www.examiner.com/muslim-in-baltimore/leading-american-islamic-scholars-speak-out-against-extremism-and-violence
If this nutty preacher were muslim and were burning the New Testament bible, you “betcha” there would be outrage and might even see a few people demonstrating their second amendment rights by the Mosque!
Khomeini died in June of 1989. He would be 110 if he were alive. Not too many pearls of wisdom there if he lived to be 110. We must be talking about 2 different.
Funny that the Jew on the blog is defending Islam.
Yes, M-H, well, Islam and Judiasm many many things in common. The extreme in ANY religion is not compatible with Western culture in my opinion. It’s interesting, I think that the three monotheistic religions have all experienced the pain of evolving. For Jews, it was the days of Jesus Christ, for Christians, it was the inquistion and other periods of bloodshed, for Islam, it is present day.
I REALLY urge people to read the interview with Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf. It is very interesting.
@Moon-howler
His “pearls” still affect modern day policy in Iran.
As to a Muslim preacher burning bibles, I don’t think that it would get the press this guy did. There would probably be protests. The military burned the bibles that were translated into Afghani languages that were sent to a soldier. They collected them and burned them. No protests. Is the burning of a bible by an imam worse than fatwas supporting death?
I remember a Jewish comedian (I forget his name.) pointing out that any evangelism that Jews had, was beaten out of them over the last 2000 years. Jews have had to adapt.
Christians went through numerous wars, but it was the 30 Years War that exhausted the religious conflicts within Christianity. And it was the decoupling of religion from secular authority that allowed peaceful co-existence with other religions. Luther forced the Church to re-examine its policies and beliefs.
However, it was the ability of both religions to examine its doctrines according to the Torah and New Testament that allowed the respective religions to adapt. Islam does not allow any examination of the Koran. It is considered perfect and unchanged since Mohammed. Perhaps the religion has not evolved enough to be compatible with western civilization.
Islam was founded 1400 years ago. Christianity at 1400 AD was settled but brooked no dissent, either. One problem is that Islam has no central authority. A central authority would be able to, perhaps, be influenced by change. As a de-centralized religion, the only authority IS the Koran. Power and influence accrue to those imams that attract followers. Therefore, the more fundamental and proactive an imam is, the more “pure”, that imam may attract more followers. However, that competition leads to strife.
Well that dude would have to be 200 if he were still alive. He was 90 when Jimmy Carter was in office…or so it seemed. 😉
for an excellent analysis on the above issue, i highly recommend the latest posting by spengler asia times, (BOOK REVIEW Reason to pause The Closing of the Muslim Mind: How Intellectual Suicide Created the Modern Islamist Crisis by Robert R Reilly)
Happy New Year Cuz!
ditto!
Palin is not getting paid for this, and Beck is donating his speaking fees to the Special Operations Warrior Foundation.
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/09/09/trending-palin-beck-team-up-on-911-event/
Why are they charging money on 9-11? Will the rally honor the fallen or will it be a political rally?
What is Beck doing in Alaska?
Beck is on vacation. See Ring’s comment for why they are charging for the separate event.
I still don’t know why they are charging. Why not pass the hat for charity?
Beck didn’t realize the date? He didn’t know about the MLK I have a Dream date either. Coincidental? Maybe not. I just hope it isn’t a political rally. That would gross me out.
I feel very strongly that 9/11 is a day of uniting not the divisiveness that I hear daily out of both parties and those who aren’t partied. People put aside their politics on 9-11 2001. On that day we were all Amerians and nothing more.
There is no central authority in Judiasm. Once again, all three monotheistic religions have had their growing pains, Islam is no different, it just happens to be occuring during our life time.
I would really like to do some research into the evolution of Islam into today’s world.
Additionally, there are plenty of Jews and Christians, who believe the “word” of the bible and do not wander into interpretation.
Elena,
The problem is that while many Christians and Jews take the Bible as literal truth, neither religion now uses the tenets of said religion as a political structure. Since Islam and Sharia are inseparable, faithful Muslims support Sharia over the laws of the land.
As to the lack of a Jewish central authority, external forces forced the Jewish people to “moderate” their expectations of their neighbors to adapt to the Jewish way of life. (I think that this is the understatement of the year.) Heck, even today, my wife is quiet about her Judaism because of bullying as a child.
Cargo, there are sure a lot of Christians out there who want to use the Bible as a political structure. Again, I am one of those dirty rotten dogs who will fight that idea with my last breath. One of my favorite organizations is Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
I have been thinking about what you said, Cargo. Christianity sure has evolved out of some of the more political aspects of its existence. I am thinking about all the social and political upheaval over the British crown after Henry VIII. How many thousands were killed? What of Oliver Cromwell after that? How about the Plymouth and Mass. Bay Colonies, The PA colonies? Utah? All of those places really were governed, at least in part, by ecclesiastical law. Some of them got sort of nasty. Salem comes to mind.
I had forgotten you had said your wife is Jewish. Imagine! Little Christians bullying littel Jews. That’s why we can’t let the majority religion stomp on the minority religion.
Bullying certainly doesn’t stop with Christian vs Jew. It happens within Christianity also. I am mainline protestant. I have been bullied, even as an adult, by evangelicals. I have gotten nasty email questioning my right to even consider myself a Christian. I know I am not the only mainline protestant who has felt this.
Hell, my husband who was raised Catholic but didn’t go to Parochial school was bullied and teased as an Apostate because he went to public schools.
That’s ok. If you’re not a Catholic, you’re all going to the hot place if you don’t reconcile with Mother Church. Come back….Come back………
Remember, no one expects http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gldlyTjXk9A
hahahaha does that include Mrs. Cargo?
sizzle sizzle
Nice Cardinals. Love those robes!
So will any of these events of the chosen ones be televised on cspan or Fox News?
@Moon-howler
Actually, no, since Jews were never part of the Catholic Church….
My mother always said that we Catholics were just heretical Jews…. I wonder where that would put the Messianic Jews?
My mother had many stories of raising a Catholic family in the middle of the Mississippi Bible belt. Tricky. New Orleans was an enclave within the South. That’s why hurricanes tend to swerve at the last minute into Texas and Mississippi.:)
Messianic Jews have the worst of both worlds.
I assumed there was a huge Catholic population in Lousiana. Am I wrong?
I guess I will fry. sizzle sizzle.
New Orleans was a Catholic enclave. French Catholic.
About the video – Not having seen it myself, here’s a review of it by Infidelesto at Infidels are Cool
http://infidelsarecool.com/2010/09/12/mr-review-of-the-new-film-america-at-risk-the-war-with-no-name/
Excerpt:
“The film focused specifically on not only the threat we face but also the lack of recognition (hence “the war with no name”) by the Obama administration in defining who our enemy actually is.
We’ve renamed the War on Terror “Overseas contingency operations”, changed “terrorism” to “man caused disasters”, removed the word “jihad” from all official national security briefs, given miranda rights to international terrorists and perpetually denied that acts of terrorism in the modern world have nothing to do with a politically driven hateful ideology within Islam.”
He also mentions a “moderate” Muslim that has good points:
“I was also VERY pleased to see Zuhdi Jasser in the film who made several appearances. Dr. Jasser’s pro-American, pro-Constitution, pro-freedom , separation of mosque and state views need to be amplified to combat that overwhelmingly dominate voices of the Muslim Brotherhood groups in America.”